Mayor Paige Cognetti in a 2021 photo. Image from Gov. Tom Wolf's Flickr account.
What caught our eye when reviewing Q1 fundraising numbers
The Federal Election Commission gathered quarterly fundraising reports for the period from January 1 through March 31.
After taking a few moments to rub our eyes … here’s what caught our eye in the first glance at the numbers.
First, there is too much money in politics.
Yes, Steve. And the sun rises in the east.
Over the last three months, nearly $16.5 million was raised by candidates for Congress in the Keystone State alone. Taking Sens. John Fetterman and Dave McCormick out of the equation, the sum still exceeds $15 million for the U.S. House.
Those candidates spent a total of $9 million to staff their campaigns and have a combined war chest totaling $44.7 million.
There’s too much money in politics.
Republican incumbents in the “swing” districts in the Commonwealth did very well in the first quarter. Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R-08) led the way with a $1.206 million haul, while Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-01) pulled in $1.17 million. (His likely general election opponent, County Commissioner Bob Harvie (D), raised $428,000.) Rep. Scott Perry (R-10) also joined the $1 million club by securing $1.13 million in contributions, while Rep. Ryan Mackenzie just missed the seven-digit club at $906,926.
But two of the Democratic challengers in those races – Paige Cognetti in the 8th Congressional District and Janelle Stelson in the 10th – outpaced their competition in fundraising. Cognetti, the mayor of Scranton, secured $1.46 million, while Stelson, the former broadcast journalist, brought in a whopping $2.17 million.
The primary contest in PA-03 will most likely determine the eventual winner in one of America’s bluest districts in Philadelphia. Rep. Chris Rabb raised the largest figure at $393,727 with Ala Stanford ($211,084) and Sen. Sharif Street ($198,601) following behind. Stanford, the pediatric surgeon, has nearly $450,000 in the bank which is nearly double the two state lawmakers.
Steve Ulrich is the managing editor of PoliticsPA, where this article originally appeared.
